Campus News

The University of St. Thomas women’s basketball team completed its inaugural season with a 8-22 record. It was the Lady Celts' first year in the Red River Athletic Conference, in which they finished 5-19.

The team showed promise heading into Christmas break with a 5-5 record, but a disappointing January and February spoiled their final record.

“We got off to a great start,” Head Coach Mike Ricks said. “We played some really good basketball in November and December, but after that we found out how hard it is to be a good college basketball team.”

The Lady Celts opened against Loyola University, New Orleans, La., in front of a packed Jerabeck Gym. While the ladies dropped an 85-55 loss to the nationally-ranked Wolfpack, they showed flashes of great play on both sides of the ball. The remainder of the nonconference schedule included games against the University of Houston, San Jacinto College and Oklahoma City University, the eventual National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics national champion.

The team recorded the first win in program history on Nov. 18 by defeating Dallas Christian College 70-37. The win propelled the Lady Celts to victory in four of their next five games, bringing their record to 5-4.

After losing to conference foe Texas Wesleyan in December, the team returned from the break and dropped their next seven games. The Lady Celts earned a much-needed win, 88-81, against the University of the Southwest on Jan. 26.

After enduring another losing streak, the team defeated Dallas Christian College again, 78-61, before going on to drop a heartbreaking game to Texas College, 65-64. They closed out the season with a loss to Southwestern Assemblies of God, 76-60.

“Our first season was a real learning experience for all involved,” Ricks said. “There isn’t a person in our program that was satisfied with our record this year. We’re going to work hard to improve and make sure that we continue to grow in our second season.”